It was a normal Saturday morning in the Slater house. The kids and I went to Dunkin' and enjoyed some coffee and breakfast sandwiches. Then it was time to do some laundry. I grabbed the laundry basket and headed down the cellar stairs.

What happened next kind of sucked. I don't mind being startled, but this was like when you get shivery startled. I took three steps down, leaving the cellar door to the kitchen open, mind you, when this bird flew right by my face and landed on the wall near the breaker box.

WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!

Northern Mockingbird in Tree
BrianEKushner
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This is the best stock photo I can find of what the bird looked like. At first I thought it was a bat, and if you've seen the movie "The Great Outdoors" (1988), you know the scene I'm referencing. I was freaking out, bro.

At first I was like, "how the hell did this thing get in here", I've had birds in the garage before but never the cellar...there isn't even a way in!

More importantly, I needed to get this thing out, translation, I needed to let this panicked bird get back to its natural habitat.

The only way out of the cellar was the bulkhead doors. So, I had my two boys stare out the window over looking the bulkhead doors, they were instructed not to leave the window until they absolutely, 100 percent saw the bird fly OUT of the cellar.

I go back "down cellar", open the bulkhead doors, the bird is flying back and forth as I cover my head and face in my hooded sweatshirt and nothing happens. The bird is still in the cellar.

"He just flew out, dad!", said Liam. "You're CERTAIN?!", I said. "Yes", he replied. Crisis averted, folks. Real first world problem kind of stuff, ya know? But how did the bird get in?

Marcus D. from Berkshire County's "Pest Off Pest Control" says most likely it was one of two things.

1. THE DRYER VENT.

So, ironically, my dryer vent's flap on the outside of the house is broken, but still, the bird looked pretty 'biggish', so I don't know how this is possible considering the dryer's "exhaust" tube is still connected...

2. THE CHIMNEY.

So, I'm pretty sure...my chimney only has two flues. One would lead you directly into my pellet stove (this flue has a cap), and the other to my boiler.

I'm stumped, however, if the bird didn't get in by these either one of these two ways!

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